Glimpse into a soul
by liznyob
Summary: Ichigo was looking for Orihime. He found Uryuu instead. Friendship, not slash.


Author's note: I've always wanted to write a Bleach fanfic. This is what I managed to come up with. Hope people like it. I don't own Bleach, in case anyone thought otherwise (yeah right)

Takes place after Ichigo loses his powers and before the Fullbring arc.

Ichigo hadn't meant to find Uryuu. He had been looking for Orihime, something that would have once been a simple task. However, having lost all his spiritual powers he was stuck with just looking around. Adding to that fact, Orihime wasn't anywhere she usually was which mean that she could be anywhere. After wondering around most of town, he made he way into a more remote area. Orihime had mentioned something about forest aliens earlier; maybe she was out trying to find them. It was proving to be a long walk indeed. He spotted Uryuu sitting under a tree by the waterfall, and decided to go ask if he perhaps knew where Orihime was. Even if Uryuu didn't know, he could at least use his own abilities to point Ichigo in the right direction. But as he got closer, he saw something that made him stop and stare.

He stopped because Uryuu was sewing, something he had never really seen before. Oh sure he had watched Uryuu fix Kon before but it seemed that whenever Uryuu whipped out that Quincy decorated sewing kit of his, there wasn't really anything to see. When it came to simple patch up jobs Uryuu seemed only concerned with speed. Ichigo had to admit it was impressive how Uryuu could turn Kon from a torn up mess to wearing some frilly lace getup in under two minutes, but aside from a flurry of thread and fabric Ichigo could never make out exactly what was happening. Not that it had ever bothered him. But whatever Uryuu was currently working on, he was taking his time with it. Ichigo could see Uryuu's slender fingers move gracefully across the fabric in what seemed to be a very slow and gentle manner.

He stared because of something else he had never seen before in all the years he had known Uryuu. An expression of peace on the Quicy's face. Ichigo knew Uryuu liked sewing; he was always up for showing off his skills, whether it was fixing Kon or making "improvements" to everyone's clothes. Still, it was hard to believe anything could make Uryuu look that way. Ichigo stood transfixed watching the Quincy sew and when Uryuu put the needle down and looked at the bundle of white fabric with a smile, a genuine smile, Ichigo almost stopped breathing. As Uryuu held his project up to the light, Ichigo finally saw what had made Uryuu look so happy. He was making a new Quincy uniform.

Suddenly Ichigo felt like he was trespassing. He had stumbled across something private and should go before he was caught. He still had to find Orihime and he spent enough time standing there for no real reason. He should just back away now and be glad Uryuu had all his attention focused elsewhere and grateful that his own spiritual energy wasn't there for Uryuu to sense him with. Hastily, he took several steps back and his heart nearly stopped when the loud SNAP of a stick on the ground broke the silence.

Uryuu quickly turned his head and his eyes locked on Ichigo's. Ichigo did his best to look casual under the intense glare, but he knew Uryuu would be able to tell that he had been standing there for a while. A heavy silence hung between, and Ichigo could only stare back at the Quincy's unreadable expression and feel terrible for having ruined the only moment of joy he'd ever seen on Uryuu's face. He wondered if there was any way to apologize without making the situation worse or if he should ignore the problem, ask about Orihime, and quickly leave. Or maybe just quickly leave. However, as was becoming more frequent, Uryuu surprised him again. He broke eye contact, turned around, picked up his needle, and went back to work.

Ichigo stood even more dumbfounded than before. Uryuu was ignoring him? After Ichigo had invaded what was clearly something personal? Was this some kind of trick? Was it actually possible that Uryuu just didn't care? Had sewing put the Quincy in such a good mood that he was willing to show Ichigo mercy for interupting him? He wasn't sure what to all over again, and Uryuu wasn't giving him any clues. He half wanted to demand the reason of such a lack of reaction and half wanted to turn around and not have to deal with the situation anymore. Yet there was also a tiny bit of him that wanted to sit down and keep watching, fascinated by this side of his friend he had never witnessed. He stood there for a little while. He couldn't seem to get his feet to move. When he tried to force himself to do something, he found himself asking "Is this one a new design or is it the same one from Hueco Mundo?"

"I'm not sure yet." Uryuu replied without even looking up. "I don't really have a plan."

"You don't have a plan?" Ichigo didn't think he'd ever hear those words comming from Uryuu.

"The last one had buttons on the sleeves. They served their function, but I don't want any buttons on this. That and a few other things. It probably won't look too different, but it's not something I sit around and figure out. A Quincy doesn't fire an arrow, he lets it go. Likewise, I do the same with my needle when making a Quincy uniform.."

Silence again as Ichigo let Uryuu's words wash over him. Was this really his friend? The one who was always so uptight and loathed impulsivness? Another question passed through Ichigo's mind."How many do you have?"

"I like having four."

"Four?" Ichigo wasn't sure why he said it like that. Like it was something strange. Like he had any idea what the proper number was and Uryuu's answer didn't match up.

"Four." Uryuu repeated, not even sounding annoyed at Ichigo's outburst. "One for summer, one for winter, and one spare for each."

Ichigo couldn't think of anything to say other than "I never noticed. Thay all look the same to me."

"Of course they all look the same." Uryuu said "I made then that way. The other ones have the same design, but use a thicker material and have a linning in them. Fighting outside in the snow without the proper clothing would be foolish."

Ichigo had to admit, Uryuu made sense. It would be downright stupid to fight in the middle of winter with only one thin layer between skin and freezing wind, and Uryuu was certainly not stupid. He put a lot of thought into what he did.

No longer concerned with how odd any of this was, Ichigo sat down next to Uryuu. They lapsed into a new silence, one that seemed natural instead of awkward. Ichigo just watched as pale, nimble fingers worked magic. He didn't really pay attention to the time, and had long forgotten about finding Orihime. Sometime though, under the silence, Ichigo felt curiosity bublling up again. He pressed it down at first, but eventually the question he had to know couldn't be kept down any longer.

"Why are you so okay with me being here?" Ichigo blurted out and wished his voice hadn't come out quite so accusing.

"What?" Uryuu asked with a puzzled expression.

"You know what I mean." There was that accusing tone again. Why was he doing that? "You're so private and I know this thing means a lot to you and I was staring and you know that and you ignored me even when I just kept standing there like an idiot and-"

"Would you please calm yourself." Uryuu frowned, giving off first hint of annoyance Ichigo had seen.

"Would you just answer my question? You've got your whole "Quincy pride" thing and I'm a soul reaper and-"

"Not anymore." Uryuu cut in quickly.

Ichigo felt himself deflate as he realized his slip up. "Yeah, you're right. I'm not."

"Not a soul reaper anymore." Uryuu repeated in a softer tone that Ichigo thought sounded strangely...happy?

"You don't have to rub it in you know." he snapped at Uryuu. "Stop sounding so damn glad about it."

That certainly seemed to fluster the Quincy "No! I mean...uh...well it's just that...you see...oh never mind."

"Jeez Uryuu. If you got something to say to me, just say it." Ichigo glared, but was startled to see Uryuu looking downward as if he couldn't meet eyes.

"Sorry." Uryuu said quietly "I know I shouldn't be so happy about it, but now I don't have to worry about my father's promise. You're not a soul reaper anymore and aren't involved with the workings of the Soul Society anymore and now I..." He paused for a few moments, a flush comming to his cheeks, before finishing. "I don't have to lose our friendship."

Ichigo didn't know what to say. Didn't know if he could say anything. There didn't seem to be words for this. He knew now that when he had been staring at Uryuu sew earlier, he had been wrong. _This_ was something personal he shouldn't be seeing. Silence gathered between them again. Ichigo looked at Uryuu, who still held his gaze downward, and realized that tomorrow would be different. He'd see Orihime and hopefully remember whatever that it was he had wanted to say to her, but tomorrow he wouldn't see Uryuu. Not really. He'd see the boy with glasses, who was smarter than everyone else and knew it, who liked to read and argue with Ichigo, who brushed people off and kept at an arm's distance. He wouldn't get to see, maybe wouldn't ever again, hell he wasn't even sure why Uryuu had let him see in the first place, the boy with who looked so serene while he sewed alone, letting the needle guide his hands rather than the other way around and deep down knew how to smile from his heart. The side Uryuu hide deep away beneath self imposed layers because in the end, he was the sort who would rather proclaim that the silver pendent on his wrist was worth losing the ties he couldn't actually bear to let go of.

The answer to his question finally answered. Ichigo didn't mind the silence anymore. The two of them would never talk about this after today, but that didn't matter. For once, the two weren't hiding their friendship under any kind disguise. For once they weren't fighting or yelling at each other. For once Uryuu had shown how much he truly trusted Ichigo. Not as just a battle partner, not merely with the fate of the world, but trusting enough to have let him in Uryuu's heart. The one thing he kept closest. The whole scenario seemed surreal.

Ichigo had wondered about his lost powers for a while after waking up back in the world of the living. At first, he wore a calm face even as Rukia faded before his very eyes. Then he wished with all his being there was some way to get around it. Some obscure loophole that would allow him to gain back all that he had lost. Now, he found himself able to start making peace with it. Uryuu wasn't the sort of person who would go back on his word. He may have been able to slip through a lophole before, but he would have certainly cut all ties if Ichigo had stayed within the Soul Society's favor. Now Ichigo could see how much that would have really crushed Uryuu. He wasn't sure that this newfound connection to his Quincy friend was worth losing the smiling faces of Rukia and Renji, but there was nothing he could do now. Instead he figured he'd concentrate on the good side. Move forward. He had to.

Ichigo looked down at Uryuu's Quincy outfit. It wasn't finished yet, but it pure white and would be perfectly crafted by caring hands. He looked back at Uryuu. "You're stitching looks crooked." he said with a grin.

Ichigo's words seemed to snap Uryuu back out of the depressing mood he had put himself in. He smiled back. "Shut up."


End file.
